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Kim Kaphwan
Kaphwan Kim, usually written surname first as Kim Kaphwan (Hangul: 김갑환, Hanja: 金甲喚, Katakana: キム・カッファン, Kimu Kapfuan), is a character in both the Fatal Fury and The King of Fighters series by SNK. Kim is a master of Taekwondo and considers himself a fighter of justice. Kim's original teammates, Chang Koehan and Choi Bounge, were to be teamed up with another dangerous criminal character to form the "Fugitive Team", but Kim was added to the team instead. His official nickname is The Crown Jewel of Taekwondo. Originally, he was going to be named Kim Haifon, but this was changed because it wasn't a viable Korean name. In more recent years, Kim's first name, "Kaphwan", was seemingly dropped, as SNK-Playmore refers to him only as "Kim". Additionally, Kim in Korean is now known as the "head of the Kim family" (金家藩). The reasons for this are unknown, though rumors speculate that he was named after the Korean president of Viccom, who had a similar pronunciation to Kim's name (金甲煥). Additionally, Kim's sons are also named after the real Kim's son (Jae Hoon) and younger brother (Dong Hwan). After the fallout of the first online game, Kaphwan was removed from Kim's name. History Fatal Fury Kim Kaphwan is the reigning world champion of Tae Kwon Do. Kim is invited by Wolfgang Krauser to compete in his King of Fighters tournament as he was hoping to face superb challengers. During the tournament Kim encounters the "Lone Wolf", Terry Bogard. Kim acknowledges Terry as the superior fighter and the duo become good friends. From that moment on Kim helps Terry in all that he can, though a definite (but friendly) rivalry is maintained. The King of Fighters Kim is considered a sport and national hero in his native Korea. This status is what enabled him to convince the authorities to give him custody over Chang Koehan and Choi Bounge to rehabilitate them of their criminal ways. Although both men resented Kim for his actions, they have since grown to grudgingly respect him. In most of his King of Fighters appearances, he has been team captain of Team Korea. In The King of Fighters XI, Kim appeared as a member of Team Fatal Fury in place of Tizoc. Wanting to see Kim enjoy himself for once, Chang and Choi convince him to join Terry Bogard and Duck King. Although he's happy that his disciples have matured, he is forced to play the middle man between his teammates, both of them ragging on each other over trivial grievances. In the team's ending, the team celebrates at the Pao Pao Cafe and Kim becomes humorously drunk, advising Terry to find a wife and get married. Realizing that his first "rehabilitation subjects" have amended their ways, Kim remembers two other villains that have disturbed him in the past, Hwa Jai and Raiden, and calls them to Southtown. Kim believes that they are still working for Geese Howard and demands that they repent. Though they immediately retort that they already have, Kim states that their talents continue to be wasted on Geese and is intent on changing their "criminal ways". His new team shocks the media and it becomes a popular subject of gossip with those who hear it. In his team's ending, Hwa Jai and Raiden act as though they were "reformed" by Kim and the gullible Kim falls for the act. Parting ways with the duo, Kim realizes that he might have been "too soft" on Chang and Choi. To honor the words of his former teammates and the struggles they went through, he decides to intensify the two criminals' already strict training. Personality Kim strives for excellence and righteousness in everything he does, be it his fighting or personal life. He is a loving husband and father, and a strict disciplinarian. He is deeply respected and admired by his acquaintances for his honesty and bravery, and has many friends amongst the characters in both King of Fighters and Fatal Fury. However, he apparently can't handle his liquor very well, as seen in his team's ending for The King of Fighters XI. One of Kim's defining characteristics is his strong, inherent sense of justice. He has the ability to tell whether or not someone is evil at a glance. As such, Kim has a special opening pose whenever he fights against an evil character, someone influenced by Orochi or any other sinister power. In this pose, he glares menacingly at the evil opponent, slowly raises his hand and points at the opponent, saying "Aku wa yurusan..." ("Evil is unforgivable...") "Hah!" before jumping into his fighting stance. Watching Kim's intro against a character is a good way to tell if the character is considered evil in the canon of the story. He is able to identify all members of the Hakkesshu, NESTS, and Those from the Past, as well as Geese Howard and his affiliates, and non group-associated characters Rugal Bernstein, K', Iori Yagami, Ash Crimson, Silber, and Jyazu. Kim erroneously identifies Kula Diamond and Adelheid Bernstein as evil, so he isn't perfect at the ability, but the former does not count because Kula was working with NESTS before KOF XI, while the latter does count because he is the son of the evil Rugal. This also culminated in SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos where he can also identify all members of the Shadaloo and Capcom's "Forces of Darkness". Fighting Style Kim uses a very traditional taekwondo style, which also packs much of a motif for phoenixes, or more accurately, the Hou'ou, a holy firebird that's a combination of a male and female phoenix. Gallery Category:SNK Playmore Characters Category:Fatal Fury Characters Category:The King of Fighters Characters Category:Neo Geo Debut Category:All Characters